


Roses That Bloom in the Night

by Mireia



Category: Final Fantasy II
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Hopeful Ending, Artistic License: Poisoning, Gen, Guilt, Near Death Experiences, Self-Destruction
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-02
Updated: 2020-10-02
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:48:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,297
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26374498
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mireia/pseuds/Mireia
Summary: After leaving Fynn, Leon lets a problem get out of hand.
Comments: 4
Kudos: 3
Collections: Press Start VI





	Roses That Bloom in the Night

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Ysavvryl](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ysavvryl/gifts).



> Edited for typos.

**Roses That Bloom in the Night**

_Leon woke up to a sharp pain in his side._

_He automatically jumped up, pushed his attacker back, and withdrew his sword. His assailant fell to the ground with a thud and a high-pitched cry. With his free hand, he quickly cast Cure and then a small Fire spell._

_In the light cast by his Fire spell, Leon could see that the person who attacked him had been a young woman. She shook her long dark hair out of her face and looked straight up at him, hatred burning in her eyes._

_"You bastard! You should be dead! My brother died because of you and the Dreadnought!"_

_She looked around and her gaze stopped on Leon’s feet. He glanced down and saw a dagger. She lunged forward. He slammed his foot down hard on the blade. Cursing, she struggled to pull the handle out from under him._

_“No! Stop!”_

_“Let her go!”_

_His foot still pressing down hard on the dagger, he looked in the direction of the voices. Two young men – a slight man and a larger bulkier man – were racing through the brush towards them. Leon braced himself for another assault, but they only grabbed the young woman under the arms and pulled her back as fast as they could._

_“Don’t try to stop me!” she shouted, struggling in their grasp. “He-“_

_“You’re just going to get killed!” the slight man snapped._

_The bulky man picked her up by her waist and threw her over his shoulder. The two backed away from Leon, only turning away to disappear through the thicket._

_Leon’s wound, which he thought should have been taken care of with the Cure spell, was still slightly burning. After the sounds of their footsteps died, Leon took his foot off the dagger, bent down, and took a closer look. The blade was no longer clean, but he could see the faint veneer of something green._

How many days ago had that been? Leon wasn’t sure. He wasn’t sure about much right now, including when the last time he had eaten was and where exactly he was. What he was sure about was that he was far from any settlement and that the cliffside hid him from the nearby road, that the idea of eating made him sick, and that it was at least late in the morning, judging by how hard the sun was bearing down upon him. And he knew that his side was still burning.

He should get up. He had never liked laying about. In Palamecia he had slept only as much as he needed to. Even back in Fynn, a lifetime ago, he was usually one of the first people awake in the day. On the rare occasions that his parents’ work took them away early in the morning, it was usually him that was charged with making sure that Maria, Firion, and eventually Guy got out of bed.

He opened his eyes. The moving of the sun had caused the direction of the shadow that the tree he had been sleeping under to change. He should at least try to move over to be under it.

He willed himself to cast Cure. Nothing happened.

Sweat beaded on his brow. The sun was bearing down hard. His side burned. He was so hot. He could not move.

He tried again. _Cure._ He strained for several minutes. Finally, he felt the warm light fill him, faint as it was. It was enough. Slowly, he dragged himself underneath the tree’s shade. It would have been easier if he taken his sword and dagger off his belt, but he still made it.

The shade, at least, gave him some comfort from the heat. And the little bit of magic he used dulled the pain of the wound. It still pulsed and burned, but it was bearable.

He looked out in front of him. In the distance was a familiar figure dressed all in white that Leon couldn’t place. The face was obscured in shadow. His pulse began to race. He blinked again. The figure was gone.

Leon stared ahead for several more minutes. Though his vision blurred in and out, he did not see the figure or its shape reappear.

He might just be seeing things. Or maybe he had seen a ghost. He remembered first being told as a child, when Firion’s parents had passed away, that sometimes the spirits of the dead returned to look over the living world. After travelling through the storied Jade Passage and Hell itself, Leon couldn’t doubt the stories about the afterlife. The war had claimed so many lives, there might very well be restless spirits wandering the countryside. He even thought he sensed something back in the throne room in Castle Fynn the last time. (If he hadn’t left so quickly, if he had actually stopped to get more supplies before he left, maybe things wouldn’t have gotten so bad. But he had to leave, had to get away. Get away from the places he couldn’t return to, get away from the people who could never see him the same way again, get away from Maria’s pleas to stay, get away from Firion’s inane promise that they’d be waiting for him when he was “ready”…)

If a spirit or anything else had caught up with him, he would have deal with whatever it could do right now. He was too exhausted to move anymore. He closed his eyes…

***

_"You don't know any magic?” Firion asked. “At all?"_

_“I don’t have any innate magical ability.”_

_“They said that about Guy years ago, but he just needed extra work.”_

_Leon remembered that. Having spent his early years being brought up in the wild, Guy was having trouble in traditional schooling and fitting in with the other children. Leon and Maria’s parents had been thinking about other types of education or apprenticeship for him and had first contacted a local Black Mage to evaluate Guy for his magical potential._

_"Well, he's not a lost cause," he, Maria, and Firion heard the Black Mage tell his parents through the door, "but it's not something he has a particular affinity for, and my first instinct wouldn't be to take him as a student."_

_If that Black Mage saw Guy now, he would be surprised. Not only did Guy know Black Magic, he was the best out of all three of them. And even though it was Firion that has the strongest command of it, they all had some proficiency in basic White Magic._

_"We travelled with Minwu for a while when we were just starting out," Maria said, a note of melancholy in her voice. Leon knew about Minwu: the white wizard was the royal family's advisor, and he was supposed to have died giving his life to break the seal on Ultima. "His white magic saved us so many times. We decided we had to all learn a least a little."_

_“I just don’t think it would be worth the trouble this late,” Leon said._

_Maria and Firion looked at each other._

_“We can’t make you do anything…” Firion said._

_“…It just wouldn’t hurt, that’s all,” Maria finished._

_Leon looked at Guy again. He looked at Maria and at her calloused hands and bruised knuckles. He couldn’t remember her having ever fought with her bare hands back in Fynn._

_“Fine,” he said. “But I wouldn’t expect much.” They went to the magic shop and purchased a basic Cure tome. And, at the last minute, Leon turned around and purchased a Fire tome. He still knew only those two spells._

_Leon had never been evaluated like Guy had back in Fynn. The first time anyone had looked at him was when he had requested access to black magic tomes in Palamecia. He had been making great strides in his training with weapons and wanted to expand his range of expertise. A black mage had been sent to him almost immediately and told him that he had no affinity for magic at all and that it would be a waste of his time to spend trying to train it. He wasn't entirely convinced, but when he requested a second opinion, another mage was sent to him._

_"L-let's look at a couple of basic spells," the mage had stammered, laying out what was supposed to be the tomes for the basic elemental spells: Lightning, Ice, and Fire. "D-d-does anything here make sense to you?"_

_After several hours of trying, Leon replied that they did not and the black mage, looking relieved, told him that everyone was different and that some people just weren't cut out for certain roles and that no amount of training could fix that._

_Within the first minute looking at these new tomes, he realized that these were_ not _the same as the "basic tomes" he had been shown in Palamecia. And, when he saw how easily it came to cast the spells in question, he knew it wasn't because the two countries took a different approach to spellcasting._

***

Leon opened his eyes. Pale light streamed in from above. He lay on a hard stone panel with a large, glowing purple rune carved in the center.

He quickly sat up. He knew this place. This was Jade, the passage to Hell. Had his body finally given out?

Suddenly, he heard footsteps. Transfixed, he stayed still and watched a figure slowly walk through the stone doorway. As the pale light touched the figure, he saw that the figure was clad head to toe in white robes. The man in the white robes was now crouched in front of him. Leon knew they had never been introduced but the man still looked incredibly familiar.

"Are you all right?" the man asked.

Leon didn't know how to respond to that. "What is this place?" he asked instead. "Who are you?"

"This is Raqia, the realm of fallen angels. And my name is Minwu."

Leon stared hard at the man. That was why he looked familiar: he'd seen the former court mage of Fynn at a distance during national events. Minwu was supposed to have died seeking the ultimate magic to defeat the empire. And if this was Raqia... "I'm dead, then?"

"Not quite yet," the man replied, "though you're close."

Minwu held out a hand. Not knowing what else to do, Leon took it and allowed the late white mage to pull him to his feet. It was then he noticed that he could see right through himself. The hand that clutched his own was opaque and solid, but his own was transparent. Leon pulled back and looked at both hands, both transparent.

“As I said, you’re not dead yet.”

“Are you here to give me a piece of your mind about being dead?”

"No," said Minwu. "I might have met my death for the same reason even if you had no involvement with the empire, though perhaps later on. With the kind of powers that the Emperor commanded, both in his life and after his death, unsealing Ultima likely still would have been necessary. ...I don't have any regrets. I knew what my fate was the moment I saw the strength of that seal."

For a moment Leon could see the shape of Minwu's mouth move through the fabric, but he heard nothing. Minwu paused for a moment, as if he were choosing his words carefully.

"...I suppose," he finally said, "that I'm curious. Why did you put so much into Palamecia to give up now?"

"The Empire is finished. There's nothing to go back to."

"The Empire is finished," Minwu said. "Palamecia might not be."

"I saw what happened," Leon insisted. "Even if Castle Pandaemonium was an illusion from our side, the destruction of the city was real. No one could have survived."

"I wouldn’t be so sure. Casualties were immense, but the will of the human spirit to survive is strong."

Leon stared at him. "You want me to go back to Palamecia? To continue what I was doing?"

“I didn’t seek you out to tell you what I want,” Minwu said, sternly. “And acting the same way we did… Trying to do things the same way will someday bring an end to this new peace, just like the old one. This is a new era. Different choices must be made.” He sighed. “... For my own personal reasons, I would rather you go back to them and put your talents to use in Fynn. But-" he held up a hand when Leon opened his mouth, "I know that's something no one can convince you to do. I won't waste my time trying."

"Good to hear that. A royal pardon can only do so much. Let's not pretend it can wipe the slate clean."

"I'm not pretending. You're not wrong: there will be people in Fynn who will never be able to forgive you regardless of what happens."

Leon blinked.

"Sorry," said Minwu. "I thought you wanted brutal honesty."

Leon watched him carefully. Taken aback as he was to hear those words coming from him, he wasn't sure if he hated it. Not yet.

Gingerly, Minwu continued. “If it’s the will of fate for a person to die, it cannot be helped,” Minwu said. “But when the choice appears to be in human hands, I don't believe in pointless death. It is already something that has happened so many times during this war. But the choice is not mine: it is yours. If you wish to move on to the next world, keep walking. You can walk with me or you can walk alone. But if the reason you want to move on is because you're unsatisfied with how you lived your life...well, by leaving it behind you leave your legacy as is. If there were any changes you wanted to make, it's too late."

Leon stared him down. Then he took a step back onto the tile and his body faded away into light…

***

He awoke with a start that pushed him off the ground. Waves of weakness and exhaustion crashed over him again, but he pulled deep inside to the last drops of magic power inside of him and cast Cure. The tides of poor health rolled back just enough to allow him to stand. He needed to find some sort of settlement now, and hope to the heavens above that there was someone there who could treat advanced poisoning.

He heard talking and footsteps. People were close. Leon's heart beat faster and he hesitated. But he took in a deep breath. He stumbled around the cliff face, towards the voices. There was a small group of people on the road, mainly adults, carrying their belongings on their backs. Like everyone else, they probably heading toward the capital.

"Stop!" Leon yelled.

All conversation ceased and every head turned to look at him. Their eyes were wide. Someone stumbled back. Another person nervously drew a weapon.

"I'm not... I'm not..." Leon pushed his sword off his back. He threw his dagger off his belt. Both weapons hit the earth with a thud. Leon took in a deep, labored breath and wiped the large amount of sweat from his brow. He willed his knees not to buckle.

The group of people stayed stunned in silence for a few moments more, and then a man cautiously said "Sir? Are you all right?"

"No...no... I need... I need..."

Leon took a step toward the group and everything went black.

***

_He didn’t know how much time passed. Everything felt like a dream. Sometimes Leon almost felt like he was a child back home in bed, being taken care of by his parents during a fever. He wondered what they must think of him now. He'd betrayed his own country, he'd helped tear apart so many other families, and he'd hurt and left Maria. More than ever he felt like Firion should have been the son they'd had from the beginning, but he wasn't, and Leon had hurt him, too._

_"You're our firstborn son and we love you. Nothing can change that." He heard his father's words so clearly, as if he were talking to him right now._

_He felt a hand squeeze his and felt [hand wipe his brow], just like his mother used to do when he was sick. It felt so vivid, he could feel the warmth of her hands._

_He'd never felt so pained and yet so at peace._

***

Eventually, Leon became aware of the sounds of human voices and the feel of sunlight bearing down on him. He opened his eyes.

He was in a temple, or at least what was left of it. The roof had been blown off and one wall had completely crumbled, but it was clearly a temple. He winced as he pushed himself up. Though missing a few stones, the floor around him had the telltale design and there was still an altar standing almost as pristine as any other.

"Oh! You're awake!"

He turned and saw the people talking: there were two people in long white robes. One of them, an older woman with faded red-blonde hair, rushed over to him.

"Stay down," she said. "Don't push yourself too much too soon."

He obediently lied down. His side was a little sore now, but it was no longer burning white-hot.

He had to know. "Do you know who I am?"

The white mage stopped what she was doing. She slowly turned to him.

"You're a patient who came in with an acute case of poisoning, likely from a poisoned weapon." she said, slowly.

"Not what I mean."

She put down her supplies and tread over to him. She sat down on his level and looked him straight in the eyes.

"...I suppose I suspected right," she said. "You are Leon, the former Dark Knight of Palamecia, aren't you?"

"That's right."

She pressed her mouth together into a hard line. "My understanding is that you defected to Fynn and are one of the warriors who put the Emperor down and helped end the war. Is that not correct?"

"That... Yes."

They continued to stare at each other for a while.

"Do you regret helping me?" Leon asked.

"Are you going to give me reason to?"

Fighting against every urge in his body, Leon held her gaze. "No," he said, honestly. "I don’t plan to."

"Well, good," she said. "Then I don't know what the point of your sick little game is." She smacked his shoulder. "Lie back down. And don't get up until I say to."

Leon obeyed.

***

When the Emperor had died the first time, Leon had declared himself the new Emperor. It was the duty of a leader to look after their followers. If anyone had survived what happened in Palamecia, shouldn't it be him tasked with looking after the survivors? Then, maybe someday he could build up the nation to be stable again and help set the tone for peaceable relations in the future. Even with his reputation, Firion, Maria, and Guy would still be active forces in Fynn for ages, and they'd already wanted to reestablish ties with him, so maybe-

Leon closed his eyes as his heart raced. Was this really such a good idea? 

He had to try and see. He’d invested too much in Palamecia to forget about it just yet. When he was well, he would leave a large donation for the temple and start making his way to Palamecia. If the Palamecians wanted him, then great. If not, or if no one was left...well, he might be seeing Maria and the others sooner than he expected. But that was something to think about for tomorrow.


End file.
